Review of The Possession (2012) by Brett H — 29 Dec 2012

This is a first, because I don't believe editing has ever single-handedly ruined a movie for me before. You have a pretty standard exorcism story here, only it is playing on Jewish tradition instead of Catholic.

Before I start kvetching, I will start with a few positives: I always like to see Jeffrey Dean Morgan in any movie, as he is always trying, regardless of the quality of the material. I thought the kid actresses were better than what I was expecting, and I will say that there are about 15 minutes of horror elements that actually work.

Now, is it put together in any sort of satisfying way? Most certainly not. The Possession has this habit of cutting away right as it is getting to the meat of the scare, and it even does so when it is reaching its climax.

It is amateurishly pieced together, and I am talking in filmmaking 101 ways where there are big transitional problems going from scene to scene. I can't even begin to tell you how many awkward cuts there are that happen mid-scene, and it makes it utterly impossible to get into the movie, even if you are trying to.

There may be a good movie in here somewhere, but it is too ineptly put together for it to surface.